Clinical Post-SARS-CoV-2 Infection Scenarios in Vaccinated and Non-Vaccinated Cancer Patients in Three German Cancer Centers: A Retrospective Analysis.

COVID-19 vaccines have become an integral element in the protection of cancer patients against SARS-CoV-2. To date, there are no direct comparisons of the course of COVID-19 infection in cancer patients between the pre- and post-vaccine era. We analyzed SARS-CoV-2 infections and their impact on cancer in COVID-19 vaccinated and non-vaccinated patients from three German cancer centers. Overall, 133 patients with SARS-CoV-2 were enrolled in pre- and post-vaccine eras: 84 non-vaccinated and 49 vaccinated, respectively. A mild course of COVID-19 was documented more frequently in vaccinated patients (49% vs. 29%), while the frequency of severe and critical courses occurred in approximately one-half of the non-vaccinated patients (22% vs. 42%, p = 0.023). Particularly, patients with hematologic neoplasms benefited from vaccination in this context (p = 0.031). Admissions to intermediate- and intensive-care units and the necessity of non-invasive and invasive respiratory support were reduced by 71% and 50% among vaccinated patients, respectively. The median length of admission was 11 days for non-vaccinated and 5 days for vaccinated patients (p = 0.002). COVID-19 mortality was reduced by 83% in vaccinated patients (p = 0.046). Finally, the median time from SARS-CoV-2 infection to restarting cancer therapy was 12 and 26 days among vaccinated and non-vaccinated groups, respectively (p = 0.002). Although this study does not have enough power to perform multivariate analyses to account for confounders, it provides data on COVID-19 in non-vaccinated and vaccinated cancer patients and illustrates the potential benefits of COVID-19 vaccines for these patients

Rituximab retherapy in patients with relapsed aggressive B cell and mantle cell lymphoma

Neither effective salvage regimens nor the outcome and response to retherapy with rituximab containing chemotherapy have been defined for rituximab pre-treated patients with relapsing aggressive lymphoma. We report here a single-centre retrospective outcome analysis of second-line immunochemotherapy with rituximab. In 28 patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B cell lymphomas, first-line immunochemotherapy had induced objective responses in 18 patients. Nine of 28 patients responded to rituximab containing salvage therapy, leading to a median overall survival of 243 days after start of second immunochemotherapy. Long-term disease free survivors (1,260 and 949 days) were restricted to the group of twelve patients that had received allogeneic stem cell transplantation as consolidation therapy. In 21 patients with relapsed mantle cell lymphomas (MCL), 19 patients had reached remissions with first-line therapy. Of those, 16 patients experienced responses to salvage therapy with a median overall survival of 226 days. Noteworthy, none of patients with initial non-responding disease reached a remission with second immunochemotherapy. Seven patients with MCL stayed free from progression after high-dose therapy with autologous or allogeneic stem cell transplantation in two and five cases, respectively. In summary, responses to repeated immunotherapy with rituximab were observed in approximately one third and two thirds of initially responding patients with aggressive B cell lymphoma and mantle cell lymphoma, respectively, but not in primarily refractory disease. Lasting remissions were achieved only by high-dose chemotherapy with stem cell transplantation

Granulocytic Sarcoma by AML M4eo (inv16) after Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation without Bone Marrow Involvement

Granulocytic sarcoma (GS) represents a rare type of extramedullar manifestation from the acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). We report the case of a patient with recurrences of AML M4eo leukaemia in the uterus and the small intestine at 3 and 5 years, respectively, after matched related peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT). The patient underwent the withdrawal of immunosuppression, hysterectomy, and local irradiation at first relapse, as well as systemic chemotherapy and donor lymphocyte infusions at second recurrence, inducing a second and third complete remission, respectively. At year six after transplantation, the patient experienced disease progression by meningeosis leukaemia to which she succumbed despite intrathecal chemotherapy. Following allogeneic stem cell transplantation, awareness for atypical manifestations of granulocytic sarcoma appears prudent, the cellular immunotherapy should aim at immunological disease control

Stem cell transplantation for hemoglobinopathy Vila Real

For most acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients, an allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) offers the highest chance of sustained remissions and long-term survival. At diagnosis, high expression of the AML-associated genes BAALC (brain and acute leukemia, cytoplasmic) and MN1 (meningioma-1) were repeatedly linked to inferior outcomes in patients consolidated with chemotherapy while data for patients receiving HSCT remain limited. Using clinically applicable digital droplet PCR assays, we analyzed the diagnostic BAALC/ABL1 and MN1/ABL1 copy numbers in 302 AML patients. High BAALC/ABL1 and MN1/ABL1 copy numbers associated with common adverse prognostic factors at diagnosis. However, while high diagnostic copy numbers of both genes associated with shorter event free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) in patients receiving chemotherapy, there was no prognostic impact in patients undergoing HSCT. Our data suggests that the adverse prognostic impact of high BAALC and MN1 expression are mitigated by allogeneic HSCT. But preHSCT BAALC/ABL1 and MN1/ABL1 assessed in remission prior to HSCT remained prognosticators for EFS and OS independent of the diagnostic expression status. Whether allogeneic HSCT may improve survival for AML patients with high diagnostic BAALC or MN1 expression should be investigated prospectively and may improve informed decisions towards individualized consolidation options in AML

Dental and Periodontal Treatment Need after Dental Clearance Is Not Associated with the Outcome of Induction Therapy in Patients with Acute Leukemia: Results of a Retrospective Pilot Study

This retrospective pilot study aimed to detect whether remaining dental/periodontal treatment need and periodontal inflammation after dental clearance would be associated with the initial therapy outcome of adult patients with acute leukemia undergoing induction chemotherapy. Different parameters were assessed from the patients’ records: initial blood parameters, blood parameters during initial chemotherapy, leukemia/therapy related complaints, duration of fever, microbiological findings (blood and urine), as well as patients’ survival. Dental treatment need was defined as the presence of at least one carious tooth; periodontal treatment need was determined by the presence of probing depth ≥3.5 mm in at least two sextants. To reflect periodontal inflammation, the periodontal inflamed surface area (PISA) was applied. Thirty-nine patients were included. A dental treatment need of 75% and periodontal treatment need of 76% as well as an average PISA of 153.18 ± 158.09 were found. Only two associations were detected: periodontal treatment need was associated with thrombocyte count after 7 days (p=0.03), and PISA was associated with erythrocyte count three days after induction of therapy (p=0.01). It can be concluded that remaining dental and periodontal treatment need as well as periodontal inflammation after dental clearance is not associated with the outcome of induction therapy in adult patients with acute leukemia

Fatal Progression of Mutated TP53-Associated Clonal Hematopoiesis following Anti-CD19 CAR-T Cell Therapy

We present the case of a 64-year-old man diagnosed with large B-cell lymphoma who relapsed twice after standard-of-care therapy. Due to persisting cytopenia, Next generation sequencing analysis was performed, revealing a small TP53-mutated clone. As a third-line therapy, the patient was treated with CAR-T cells, which resulted in complete remission. However, this treatment also led to the expansion of the TP53-mutated clone and therapy-related myelodysplasia with a complex aberrant karyotype. This case may serve as a paradigmatic example of clonal hematopoietic progression in a patient undergoing CAR-T cell therapy, especially in the context of a TP53-mutated clone